Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy in Treating Patients With Radiation Necrosis of the Brain

• Status: Unknown status
• Trial end date: 2005-06-01
• Target enrollment: 0
• Participant gender: All

Summary

RATIONALE: Hyperbaric oxygen may increase blood flow and decrease swelling in areas of the brain damaged by radiation therapy. Giving hyperbaric oxygen therapy together with dexamethasone may be an effective treatment for radiation necrosis of the brain.

PURPOSE: This randomized clinical trial is studying how well hyperbaric oxygen therapy works in treating patients with radiation necrosis of the brain.

• Phase: N/A
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers?: No

Details

• Lead Sponsor: Barrett Cancer Center
• Collaborator: National Cancer Institute (NCI)
• Treatments: Dexamethasone

Criteria

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Definitive diagnosis of brain radionecrosis by MRI and positron emission tomography scan

• Clinically symptomatic with signs of worsening neurologic deficits (e.g., focal deficits or intractable seizures)

• Condition currently managed with increasing steroid dosage

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

• No severe pulmonary disease (i.e., untreated pneumothorax, emphysema, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or asthma)

• No active congestive heart failure

• LVEF ≥ 35%

• Not pregnant

• Negative pregnancy test

• Fertile patients must use effective contraception

• No psychological, familial, sociological, or geographical conditions that would preclude study compliance

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

• See Disease Characteristics

• No prior or concurrent bleomycin

• No concurrent doxorubicin hydrochloride

• No concurrent disulfiram